When the group returned to Athens, they handed in their report, and before they had time to rest, they received an order to report to the upper echelons of the province of Europa. When he arrived at the venue, the head of the regiment found that there were not only those who came to listen to the report, but also the experts who came with the Qincha and the Qincha.

After recounting what he had seen and heard, the head of the regiment answered some questions, and the report ended. The upper echelons of the province discussed the problem, the head of the regiment returned to the bathhouse to take a bath, and there were many factories in the city of Athens that used boilers and steam engines, and bathhouses as derivatives also appeared. During this condolence activity, the head of the regiment has not taken a bath for more than half a month. Coupled with all kinds of insect bites out in the mountains, he had enough. Soaking in the warm pool heated by the steam, scratching the bumps, the regimental commander tried not to take on such a hard errand again.

The hard work was felt by the executors, and the Europa upper echelons felt their desire for the telegraph network. The Qian Zhuang experts, who thought that they all had a miser mentality, did not support this huge investment project, and Yang Congrong couldn't help but laugh when he heard the experts say that 'without a telegram, there would be no money bank'.

The invention of the telegraph by the Zhao official family was only a matter of twenty or thirty years, and the money village existed for hundreds of years. From a logical point of view, this does not conform to the logic of reality. Yang calmly considered himself a layman in the bank, and he did not laugh to ridicule the logic of the experts, but found that he and the experts had the same views on the relationship between the telegram and the bank. Without the telegraph network, there would be no way for the money bank to exert its strength.

Yang calmly smiled, and said, "Let's wait and see what the Eastern Rome does with the assassins inside." ”

"Did the envoy want the Eastern Roman Emperor to kill the Cantakuzenus family?" The expert asked.

Yang calmly replied: "I don't really care if I kill or not." At this, he shook his head, "No, I would love to take revenge on the Kantakuzenus family. What matters now is not revenge, but the hope that the Eastern Rome will solve the problem. I thought that the Yuan Kingdom was the most capable in the Quadripartite Alliance, followed by the Western Romans. In recent years, it has been found that it is the most reliable in Eastern Rome. ”

"The Eastern Romans occupy the Bosballus, they have a geographical advantage. The best that should have been developed. Qianzhuang experts do not agree with Yang Congrong's judgment.

"In this ......, the Red Sea region is regarded as the Tianzhuyang Economic Circle, but I did not expect that the products of Eastern Rome and Ethiopia are completely complementary. The Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea are calm, and our fleet can travel once a month. In recent years, the volume of trade has increased dozens of times. Since the year before, alfalfa hay has been added to Ethiopia. It's called a big ...... Belch...... Big...... What's coming. ”

"Commodities." Qian Zhuang experts speak professional terms.

"Yes, it's commodities." Yang Congrong felt that this word, which only appeared in recent years, was so apt to describe the characteristics of trade. Even though the Ethiopians were good at raising cattle, only once in the trade were 1,000 tons of corned beef and hides transported in one way. That's less than a ship in the Europa provincial fleet. In recent years, local alfalfa hay has been purchased and transported back to the Eastern Mediterranean region for livestock rearing, and the one-way transportation volume has increased from a few hundred tons to 780,000 tons. The frequency of trade between the two sides was initially once or twice a year, with two or three medium-sized ships at a time, and the goods were often brought back after they were not sold. Now the frequency of trade is five times a year, twelve large ships at a time. The goods are sold clean every time. Only the word 'commodities' can accurately describe the current situation.

Wang Qincha was excited when he heard this. As the director of the Ministry of Officials, he received economic education and participated in the selection of officials in the economic department. After spending some time in Europa, I felt that trade was a huge boost to the economy. No matter how many barbarians they killed, the Zhao Guanjia would not frown, but they strongly advocated trade overseas. The development of the provinces of Europa proved that as long as the other side was willing to join the trade system dominated by the Great Song Dynasty, it could suddenly burst into astonishing wealth like a trick.

Looking at his old classmates, Wang Qincha sighed in his heart. Because of the lack of officialdom information, the old classmate inevitably underestimated himself. There is indeed no one in the upper echelons of the Great Song Dynasty who is Yang Congrong's backstage, but this does not mean that no one supports Yang Congrong. At least Wang Qincha knew that the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Governors praised Yang Congrong. If it weren't for the two of them working behind their backs, how could the crown prince Zhao Qian stand up for Yang Congrong, who had never known all his life. With Yang's calm talent, it should be the right choice to support this old classmate.

Thinking about his own interests here, Yang calmly and Qian Zhuang experts are further discussing the affairs of the telegram network. This is a very rational discussion, and as we talk about it, we can come up with a seemingly very reasonable ultimate blueprint according to reason. If a telegraph network could be established covering the Black Sea, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the Red Sea, the money estates and fleets of the provinces of Europa would rely on the telegraph network covering the three seas to operate their currency and trade, and they would surely create great wealth.

Wang Qincha was thinking about his own thoughts, and he didn't care what others said. I listened to it a little in the second half, and the more I listened, the more I felt that something was wrong, and hurriedly spoke out to stop the crazy fantasies of these guys. The mission did not come here to incite the ambitions of the province of Europa. The telegraph network connecting East and West Rome has not yet appeared, so why consider a telegraph network covering the Three Seas.

Everyone was dragged back to the cold present by Wang Qincha from the rhapsodic future, and the discussion immediately returned to reason. The best situation for the province of Europa was the full opening of the Eastern Roman court, and the integration of land, resources, and labor into the trade system dominated by the Great Song Dynasty. Not only could the Great Song Dynasty use these resources to create great wealth, but the Eastern Roman Empire could also enjoy prosperity from them. If the Eastern Roman Emperor and his court were committed to this goal, they would have to brave the threat of moths to the flames of assassins to eliminate all feudal lords in Eastern Rome. This matter is related to the life and death of the feudal lords of Eastern Rome, and the process is bound to be cruel.

Speaking of which, the meeting digressed again. Whether a country is civilized or not depends on whether the country's own history is deep enough, and whether it can reflect on its own history, and then recognize itself, push through the old and bring forth the new, and continue to make progress. The problems faced by Eastern Rome have arisen many times in Chinese history, and the promising imperial courts of all dynasties have overcome difficulties and dangers, eliminated separatist and feudal forces, and relied on the system of great unification to promote social progress. This round of progress led by Zhao Guanjia is undoubtedly the most thorough in Chinese history.

Not to mention the separatist forces or feudal forces, even the centuries-old private ownership of land was uprooted, and the imperial court integrated the entire country with unprecedented strength. With Eastern Rome as a comparison, everyone finally saw how arduous the road that the Great Song Dynasty had traveled for decades was, and how brilliant and magnificent the future this road pointed to.

Wang Qincha did not stop the discussion, and he himself sighed: "With copper as a mirror, you can be dressed properly; With the ancient as a mirror, we can know the rise and fall; With people as a mirror, you can see the gains and losses. "With a deep Chinese history as a contrast, Wang Qincha, who had not been in the province of Europa for a short time, could see the direction of the Eastern Roman Empire's efforts, its position, and the problems it faced.

Who I am, where I came from, and where I'm going. At such a point in the discussion, the participants all had similar feelings to Wang Qincha. Yang calmly said in a calm and proud tone: "God has given people the right to choose freely. ”

Hearing this, everyone in the congregation was stunned, and then burst into laughter. It's a great feeling to be above all the countries and politics of the Eastern Mediterranean, to be like a god in the clouds, to see through the world and see into the future.

"God has given people the power to choose freely." The ethereal voice of the Eastern Roman emperor echoed in the prayer room of the palace, where ministers, eunuchs, generals, and nobles sat on the benches. Duke Kantakuzenus sat in the midst of these men, quietly listening to God's spokesman on earth. The duke tried to make his appearance look as pious as he could, and his son's engagement party was poisoned by a maid. Even if the Duke drank two glasses of 'poisoned wine' in public to temporarily get rid of the suspicion of poisoning, he didn't dare to expose his flaws in giving people attacks.

The Eastern Roman Empire was famous for its torture, and eye-gouging, skinning, and cannon branding were commonplace. During the centuries when imperial power was weakened, the emperor was rarely able to eliminate the nobility. Any nobles and sinners who fall into the hands of the Emperor are to be used with maximum efficiency. Torture is undoubtedly the best means of intimidating traitors. The current Eastern Roman Emperor has proclaimed the abolition of all torture, and he said that those who rebel against God's spokesman will go to hell and suffer forever after death, so they are given a merciful death before they die. The Duke of Cantakuzenus did not believe a word, and if the duke's father had a little luck, the position of God's spokesman would have been inherited by the Cantacuzenus family, who also had strong royal blood.

The Emperor's lectures were still the same old fashion, God blessed the Eastern Roman Emperor, and the Emperor spread God's will to the general public. The Duke maintained a pious posture, which he did not feel used to at first, but after a long time it became a state of almost natural reaction.

At the end of the lecture, the Duke and the others recited the 'Amen' cross. He didn't dare to be the first to get up and leave, nor was he the last to go. As he was mixing in the crowd and following the crowd out of the prayer room, as soon as he walked out of the house, the eunuch Horru stopped the Duke at the door, "Your Excellency, please come with me." ”

"Why?" Duke Kantakuzenus asked cautiously.

"The Emperor wants to talk to His Excellency the Duke."

The eunuch Horru's expression was flat and he couldn't see anything. This made the duke's heart beat a drum, which was not a good omen. Hundreds of years of court strife taught eunuchs to control their expressions. The more bland the look, the more it represents some kind of danger.

As the eunuch arrived at the reception room, the Duke of Cantacuzenus saw eight guards lined up on either side of the emperor. Holru walked up to the Emperor and saluted, "Your Majesty, I have invited the Duke of Kantakuzenus. With the Emperor's motion, Holru stood beside the Emperor. With the addition of two attendants holding trays, there was a huge disparity of eleven to one in the reception room.

The duke saluted the emperor, and a maid moved in to the soft *** lord only then noticed that in addition to ten men and one eunuch, there were two maids in the reception room. With the addition of the two of them, it is thirteen to one.

The Emperor spoke, "Kantakuzenus, did you write a letter to the Sulman family of the Duchy of Athens?" ”

After a minute of reminiscence, the Duke remembered that he had written a letter about a few years earlier, presumably to encourage Sulman to rebel against the province of Europa in the Great Song Dynasty. Since he did not directly order Sulman to rebel against the Eastern Roman Emperor, the duke was still able to maintain a minimum of composure. He responded: "Your Majesty, I don't remember writing a letter. ”

The corners of Holru's mouth rose slightly, a mocking reaction. The emperor's expression did not change, and he waved his hand. The attendant then walked up to the Duke of Cantacuzenus with the tray, and the duke's face changed when he saw the letters on the tray. Swallowing, the Duke picked up the letter. Without even looking at any more content, the familiar envelope alone made the Duke understand the big picture.

Turning over the envelope, the duke's coat of arms was left on the fire paint on the back seal. Each Europa nobleman sealed his letter with fire paint, and then used a seal to leave a mark on the fire paint that was not fully solidified. Prove that the letter was indeed sent by the family. Pulling out the letter, it was a familiar font for the duke's private secretary, and the text and the meaning of the text were all about asking Sulman to make the Great Song Europa Province. With some difficulty putting the letter back into the tray, the Duke said, "Your Majesty, this must be a forgery!" ”

The corners of the eunuch Horru's mouth rose widely, causing a mocking smile to be seen by the duke, who was looking in the direction of the emperor. Eunuchs would have such expressions whenever they had gained the upper hand in political killing. The Duke only felt like falling into an ice cave, and he didn't even have the courage to defend himself loudly. In the midst of such chaos, Kantakuzenus only felt that his mind was confused. Escape? Revolt? The eight heavily armed guards looked at each other with fierce eyes.

In the past, the Cantacuzenus family had a good relationship with many royal guards, and with the Eastern Roman emperor disbanding the mercenaries, the cats and dogs in the city were recruited into the Roman legions. This relationship was completely severed. The poor demons who turned into Roman legions not only had no respect for the nobles, but even voluntarily refused to come into contact with them. A few years ago, however, when the carriages of nobles passed by the road, hordes of poor ghosts pleaded for rewards on the roadside. The nobleman threw them a few small sums of money, and the poor ghosts would pounce on them and kiss the nobleman's feet......

All kinds of thoughts were running wild in his heart, but the Duke of Kantakuzenus could not move like a bird targeted by a poisonous snake. Then the emperor spoke, "Cantakuzenus, I don't want to kill the Roman nobles because of the accusations of the province of Europa. So I'll give you a chance, if you hand over all your territories to the court, what reward would you want the court to give you? ”

The emperor's tone was calm, his voice was steady, and every word clearly reached the ears of the Duke of Kantakuzenus. The duke found himself unable to understand what the emperor was saying. For inciting the nobility of the former Duchy of Athens

The Emperor did not want to kill the Roman nobles because of the demands of the province of Europa, and the Duke could understand that this sentence was a foreshadowing of the asking price that would follow. Asking the Duke to hand over all the territory is something that the Duke understands but cannot understand. Surrendering all of his territory means that the Duke has nothing. According to the system, even if the duke is killed, his people can inherit the territory.

At this moment, the duke couldn't understand what the emperor meant, and he seemed to understand what the emperor meant.